Monthly Archives: September 2011

I’m feeling a little random today. Kelsey is at preschool. I have an enormous list of things I could be doing. But, I can’t concentrate on any one thing. Maybe I’m just getting older and my brain doesn’t function as well. Maybe I’m tired. Maybe I have too many things going on in my head. Who knows? But, in the spirit of today, here’s some completely random observations on life from the mind of Aubrey Gee. Be afraid . . . be very afraid.

I really want it to be fall. I keep seeing pictures of soup and pumpkin-y things and just can’t wait. Oh, and I’d like to personally thank my friend who posted the recipe for Pumpkin Cookies with Carmel Frosting on Facebook. You know who you are. I’ve been craving those all week. I may finally break down and make them today. If I eat pumpkin, it will negate the fact that it’s going to be 107 degrees today, right? PLEASE, Fall, can you get here???

I really should have worked out today. But, I had to get up and shower early, and it seems such a shame to waste a perfectly good shower by going to the gym. Of course, if I actually make those cookies, I may have to . . .

I went to the zoo last week with Kelsey. And, I realized something. I am not the young mom anymore. I looked around the zoo, and all I saw were twenty-something young moms (half of whom were pregnant) with crazy toddlers running around. And, then I looked down at my sometimes-behaving 4-year old who actually follows some directions. And, I won’t even have a kid after next year to take to the zoo on a ‘normal’ day. The funny thing? I was sad that my days at the zoo were coming to an end, but I was NOT sad that my days of crazy toddlers running around are ending. I’ll take my 4-year old who doesn’t run off when she sees a squirrel – or a leaf, or a rock, or the sky – thank you very much.

We replaced our zoo pass with season passes to Six Flags Over Texas. That has been eye opening. As I was trucking up the long, long hill of the Titan on Saturday, I came to a realization. I. Am. Old. I realized this as I was hyperventilating because I was six miles up and about to drop straight down in 2.3 seconds. Can someone remind me why that is fun? I realized it as I was having a panic attack that my two very small kids were going to fly out of the rollercoaster because the stinkin’ lap bar didn’t come all the way down to their skinny little laps. I realized it when I felt nauseous after riding a roller coaster TWICE. I even remarked to the teenager sitting next to me that I used to be fun. She just stared at me, disbelief written all over her face. Oh well. At least there’s the train and the carousel. That’s a little more my speed now, apparently.

Even though I am grateful to be almost out of the little kid stage, I love me some babies! Thanks Rand for having another one so that I can just hold yours!

Well, that’s enough of that. I suppose I should go do something productive. Hopefully I can focus long enough to get something done! 🙂

Today was an epic day in the Gee Household. But, before I explain, let’s look at some history.

11 years ago, Jon and I became parents. We were totally naive, and actually kind of thought we knew what we were doing. In fact, we were so confident in our parenting abilities, that we decided to have another kid a mere 16 months after the 1st one. That’s right, we were pros.

It took about 2 more years before we were ready to add another kidlet to the mix. We were getting a little smarter, but not much. After all, when kid #3 came along, that meant we had 3 kids under the age of 4. We could handle it, right??

Apparently, something clicked in our brains after that, and we waited 3 whole years before we rounded out the Gee Six.

And, that’s where we’ve been sitting for almost 5 years now. It’s been 11 years since I have had any alone time to speak of. Sure, there was a weekend here, or a night out there. But, for the most part, I have been “Mama” 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for 11 years. Any idea how long that is? It’s 96,096 hours. No wonder I’m tired all the time!

One by one, my kids have progressively gotten older. One by one, I sent them off to school, until I was just left with my sweet little baby. And, I’ve loved having her with me. She’s my little buddy. I drag her everywhere with me, and she’s pretty good natured about it. Today, however marked a change.

Kelsey went to her first day of preschool. She was ecstatic. When I came out of my room at 6:25 this morning to get the other kids up for school, she was sitting outside my door. Fully dressed. Trying to put on her shoes. When I took the other kids to school at 7:30, she sat on the floor and pouted because it wasn’t time for her to go.

Finally, the time came. We loaded up her backpack, took the fireplace picture, and she was off.

I can’t believe how grown up my wee baby is. She informed me that I just needed to drop her off at the door – I didn’t need to even come in. 😦 She didn’t have much of a choice! She had a fabulous day, and by the time she left had to give hugs to her new friends.

I didn’t cry, but I did choke up a little bit. But, it only lasted a minute before I was making a break for the door. 96.096 hours later, and I was going to be without any of my kids for several days a week. I had been looking forward to that moment for 6 months!

I’ll be honest. I really didn’t know what to do with myself. I went to the gym. I came home. And then, I literally wandered around the house feeling a little lost. I finally decided to go shopping – not because I needed anything, but merely because I could. I didn’t really buy anything, but I had a great time taking AS LONG AS I WANTED without any kids whining at me. I grabbed some lunch, and went home and read a book.

So, it’s a new frontier for us. I’m sad the first phase is almost over, but I’m excited for the new one coming. Hopefully I can figure out what to do, though, so I don’t spend the next 12 years wandering around my house. 🙂